


The Mistake of Coming Home

by Jen Bradlee (BlackShip)



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Kissing, Riverdale, Running Away, Sex, Sexual Tension, coming home, like they're in their 30s, older Betty Cooper, older Jughead Jones
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-25
Updated: 2017-06-28
Packaged: 2018-11-18 22:47:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11300427
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlackShip/pseuds/Jen%20Bradlee
Summary: Jughead Jones left Riverdale at the age of 18 and never looked back.He made a life for himself as an author, publishing his fiction, and traveling the country on his motorcycle. Jaded and scruffy, Jug embraces who he is, but regrets linger in the back of his mind.Until Betty Cooper called him out of the blue one night fourteen years after he'd left her and Riverdale behind.





	1. Chapter 1

Riverdale still held the small town charm, but he could still see the rot as he turned his Harley down Main Street. It lingered in the suspicious glances of the people loitering on the sidewalks. Even the familiar, albeit aged, faces of the shopkeepers who lined the streets appeared in the windows as he roared toward the center of town.

 _Maybe this had been a bad idea_ , he groused to himself as he veered off the side street toward Pop's. As the neon of the diner came into view, Jughead relaxed, allowing the tension of this whole trip to fade into the dust behind him.

He pulled up to the diner and turned off the engine. Jughead wanted nothing more than to get back on the highway and find a new town, a place where he could lose himself while he wrote his next novel. His agent wanted the new manuscript on his desk by the end of the year. With summer in full swing, it didn't leave much time to waste.

 _One drink,_ he told himself as he ruffled his hair and stepped off the bike. He ran his hand over his face as he scanned the large glowing windows for a familiar blonde. The rough prickle of scruff bit his hand. _Maybe I should've shaved._ Jug dropped his hand. _Fuck it. Let's get this over with._

A midnight phone call brought him to Riverdale. The honey sweet voice laced with alcohol and need asked him to come. _Betty Cooper_. She'd drunk dialed him.

They'd exchanged numbers once through an email about four years after he'd left Riverdale. She'd found his blog and sent him a message. He still wasn't sure if replying had been the best idea. That was ten years ago.

Fourteen fucking years since he'd set foot in this goddamn town. Once he turned eighteen, he took off without even a glance in the rearview.

With a deep breath, Jug crossed the short distance to the diner entrance. He stepped inside. It was as if he'd stepped back in time. The diner hadn't changed, not a bit. Struck with nostalgia, Jug took in the peaceful scene and a sense of ease filtered through his body.

"Juggy?"

The serenity fled, replaced by a much more visceral emotion as the heat coiled like a viper in his gut. Jug turned.

Betty stood next to the corner booth. Her hair lay loose and flowing, a golden cloud framing her face enhancing her green eyes and full red lips. The girlish figure he remembered had morphed into a woman's curves. Jug's imagination immediately shifted into overdrive.

Yeah, they'd screwed around in high school when they'd dated, but for the fucking life of him, he couldn't remember the pull, the lust being this goddamn fierce. The randy fumbling of a teenager would undoubtedly pale in comparison to the fierce chemistry between two mature adults.

"You came." Betty sounded surprised. Her response shook him from the sexual fantasy forming in the back of his mind.

Jug shrugged and approached her.

She met him halfway and wrapped her arms around him. "It's so good to see you."

Her scent wove into his senses, pulling dormant memories to the surface, filling his head with emotions he'd long since buried. Betty smelled just as good as she had in high school, only better. Time added its own sweet scent to her. She'd ripened into a woman while he'd been gone.

Regret stabbed him in the gut. He pushed it away and backed out of her embrace.

Uncertainty and pain flickered in her eyes before she turned away, leading them to the corner booth away from the windows. He slid onto the bench across from her. When he met her gaze, Jug faltered and the words he'd rehearsed went sailing into a dark abyss. Goddamn, he'd missed her.

There had been a million reasons why he had to leave Riverdale, but in that moment, none of them mattered. Not now.

Hurt shone bright in her expression. She masked it well with a measured smile and a flick of her wrist as she tucked her hair behind her ear.

"Betty, why'd you call me?" Jug asked. The faster they had this conversation, the faster he could leave Riverdale, and Betty, behind.

***

Jughead Jones looked like sin personified. Okay, maybe just temptation. The moment he walked into the diner, Betty knew she'd fucked up. She should've deleted his number years ago, but she couldn't. And one drunken mistake landed her in a situation she'd both longed for and feared.

 He sauntered into their high school haunt with a swagger that bespoke maturity and confidence that he'd only started discovering at the age of eighteen. The leather jacket echoed the same one the Serpents had given him that rainy night. But where his tousled black hair reminded her of his younger incarnation, the shadow of a beard along his jaw and shrewd look in his haunting eyes warned her of the evolution Jughead experienced at the hands of time.

It took all of her effort to push down the sudden rush of attraction. Betty wanted nothing more than to taste the man her boy had become.

Betty pressed her hand over her heart in a lame attempt to slow the race of her pulse. _Control yourself, Betty Cooper._ _You're not some sex starved teenager._ She dropped her hands below the table and clenched her fists, digging fingernails into her palms.

"Why'd you call me?" he asked.

 _Why indeed, Betty?_ She wondered herself. Clearing her throat, she met his intense gaze. _Tell him the truth,_ the tiny voice in the back of her mind screamed.

"I missed you." The words spilled from her lips in a rush, an exhale of truth leaving her in emotional limbo. She searched his face for a reaction, finding only the remnants of age in lines at the corners of his eyes and the impassive stare of a jaded man.

"You missed me, so you decided to call me in the middle of the night and invite me to dinner in a town I swore I'd never return to?" He tapped his fingers against the Formica table top. Jug arched his brow and the corner of his mouth twitched as he waited for a response.

"I had a few drinks, and..." She paused embarrassed by the confession, but Betty knew Jug would see through her garbled lies. So she confessed the truth. "I found the letter you left for me when I was cleaning out my closet."

"You kept it?" Jug leaned back and dropped his hands in his lap. "Why?"

"Because you wrote it." She swallowed the lump of rising emotion in her throat. "I kept everything you gave me."

"Betty, I—" He paused obviously conflicted by the conversation. Jug sighed and glanced around the diner before finally turning back to her. "I shouldn't have come."

Jughead climbed from the booth and headed for the door.

Panic clawed at her heart. Betty darted after him, catching his arm just as he pushed open the door.

"Don't you dare walk out that door, Jughead Jones. I'm not done talking." The leather twisted under her grip.

He jerked his hand away and turned to face her. "I am."

With those words, he left. Betty stared after him, hurt and shocked.

"Oh, no you don't." Betty shoved the door open and ran. "Jug!"

Jughead picked up his helmet without looking at her.

Breathless, she climbed onto his bike and sat there, steadfast, her skirt riding high on her thighs. His gaze lingered on her bare leg then trailed higher until it locked with hers.

"You're not leaving until we talk about what happened." Betty hesitated at the feral look in his eyes.

"There's nothing to talk about, Betty." He lifted her effortlessly from his bike, pulling her against his leather clad torso. The clean smell of his aftershave mingled with a hint of gasoline and fresh air. Her head spun as he gripped her arms, holding her tight.

"Damn it, Jug, I want to know why you fucking ran away and left me alone." She fisted her hands in his jacket. Her grip held as firm as his. "You abandoned me when I needed you."

He snorted. "You had your family, Betty. You had Archie and Veronica. The last thing you needed was a deadbeat like me hanging around."

Fury poured through her veins. "I loved you, Jughead. I chose to be with you. We had a shot at a real future, and you threw it away. I deserve to know why."

"Because you deserved better than me, Betts." His voice softened a bit, but a current of tension undercut every word.

"That wasn't your decision to make." She leaned closer to him soaking in his heat, his scent. "I wanted to spend my life with you."

He stared at her, his eyes wide, jaw stiff.

"I still love you, Jug," Betty said, her voice a husky whisper.

His eyes drifted closed, the strength of his hold never fading. When he finally opened his eyes, Betty gasped at the heat burning there.

"Jug—" Her words disappeared on his lips. His kiss rocked her to her very core. Every sensation kicked into focus, the scratch of his beard against her skin, the strength of his embrace, his warm, masculine scent weaving into her brain. He'd never kissed her this way before with such desperation and hunger.

When he deepened the kiss, Betty moaned. He tasted different, in the best kind of way. The hint of tobacco and mint coupled with the unique flavor she'd always associate with Jug. She explored his mouth, needing more contact, more of him. His hands slid over her shoulders, one cupping her head, the other curving around her hip. She threaded her fingers through his hair, pulling gently.

Jug groaned and nipped her lower lip.

He stilled and slowly pulled back. "Betty," he whispered against her mouth. "We shouldn't..."

"Come home with me." She would shatter if he left her in this pool of need. No one could unravel her the way he did. No one ever would. If she couldn't convince him to stay—Betty pushed the thought aside. "Please, Jug, just for tonight."

He sighed, but she noticed the smile curving his lips. "I'm a sucker for blondes who beg."

Betty's heart soared at the sight of even a hint of a smile. "Want to follow me home?"

"I've got a better idea." Jughead handed her the helmet. "Get on."

She stared at the helmet then back at Jug. "I don't know. I've never ridden a motorcycle."

His smile turned into a full blown grin. "I guess I get to be another first for you."

Betty half-heartedly smacked his arm even as the heat rose in her cheeks.

"Betty Cooper, did I just make you blush?" Jug smoothed his fingertips across her cheek.

"Shut up." She put the helmet on ignoring the desire pulsing through her body making her sway. A few more minutes with the charming rogue and Betty would jump him in the parking lot of Pop's. "You remember where Stewart Street is?"

He nodded.

"I live at 819."

Jug straddled the bike and kicked the starter. The motorcycle roared to life matching the thundering of Betty's heart. He nodded to the seat behind him.

Hiking her skirt as high as it would allow without flashing her underwear to the whole town of Riverdale, Betty settled on the seat behind Jughead. He took her hands and locked them around his waist. She had to lean against the broad back of the man she loved. What a hardship.

Jug backed the bike out of the parking spot and sped off into the oncoming night.

She closed her eyes as they cruised through town. Her hands locked around his waist brushing both leather and cotton. Betty nuzzled against his back. Her right hand strayed low enough to brush the hard bulge in the front of his jeans.

He stiffened his posture. The RPMs revved higher as Jug goosed the throttle and sped around the corner onto her street. Jug pulled up short in front of her house and turned off the engine.

They sat still for a moment. Betty's hands rested on Jug's thighs.

"You like to torture me, don't you, woman?" Jug's voice echoed low between them as he twisted in his seat to look at her.

"Can you blame me?" Betty licked her lower lip.

"Come on," Jug said as he pulled her off the motorcycle and toward the front door.

She felt his heat and impatience as she unlocked the door. As soon as the bolt slid away, Jug pushed the door open and shuffled her inside. Once they crossed the threshold, he spun on her pushing her firmly against the door, slamming it closed.

The movement made her jump.

Jug pinned her against the door, his hands in her hair, his lips crushing hers in a punishing kiss. He demanded, possessed, and Betty reveled in it. She'd waited too long for him. Her body responded instantly, needing all he was willing to give her and more.

"Betts," he murmured against her mouth. Jug dropped kisses between words, trailing down her neck, nipping at her flesh. "You taste like heaven."

"Jug," Betty gasped his name as he dropped his hands to her waist and began pulling her skirt up by the handfuls. When his fingers brushed the tops of her thighs, she groaned.

He traced the hem of her panties and slid his fingers under the fabric. She wiggled against him as he pulled them down. Her heel tangled in her underwear, and she collapsed against Jug laughing like a fool, even with desire burning like a bonfire.

"You okay?" Jug's laugher joined hers.

She kicked the panties across the room. His appraisal skimmed her full length before he backed her against the door, hiked her skirt around her waist, and ground his hips against her aching center.

Betty reached for his jacket and pushed it off his shoulders. Jug tossed it with her discarded underwear and kissed her hard. Their lips met, tongues dueled, tasting and taking from each other, desperate to make up for lost time and a hundred regrets.

She unfastened his belt and pants. Her hands slid into the band and pushed down, revealing his soft skin and taut muscular backside. Betty raked her nails across his skin.

Jug hissed and then moaned. "Kitten still has her claws I see."

"I only ever used them on you." Betty smoothed her hands over his ass.

"I feel special." He growled when she freed his cock.

"You should." She stroked his length.

"Holy fuck." He breathed hard before leaning his forehead against hers. "Sorry, love."

"Sorry for what?"

He took his cock in hand and ran the head across her wet opening. With barely a breath, he lifted her, leaning her weight against the door, and slid home.

Betty gasped. He filled her. She wrapped her hands around his neck as he thrust into her. His body tensed with every movement. She reveled in his strength and the sensations flowing through her.

Jug had gotten bigger, broader, stronger. He bore her weight like nothing she would have ever imagined before. He'd gone from lanky boy to the man of her fantasies. The man she'd always known he would become, filling out and filling her.

She threaded her fingers in his shaggy hair and pulled, forcing him to face her. He met her gaze and thrust into her, forcing a moan from her lips. He smiled and she glimpsed the boy she'd once known.

"I love you, Jughead Jones."

He drove into her again. "Say it again."

"I love you," she murmured, kissing his lips softly.

Jug continued to fuck her, drawing words, confessions from deep inside her.

"I need you." She whimpered. "Please."

"Come for me." He kissed her again and ground his hips against hers.

The friction mixed with the intensity of the moment pushed her toward climax. Betty held onto him, forcing her hips to move in movement with his. When the sparks tingled in the pit of her stomach, she rode him harder, kissed him desperately, letting the orgasm consume her.

Slowly she came down from the high, barely coherent. When Jug reached his peak, he pulled out, letting himself finish on her thigh.

Together they leaned, intertwined, against the door.

"Let's take this upstairs." Betty brushed the raven hair out of his eyes.

Jug adjusted his clothes enough to be able to walk and lifted Betty into his arms. "Which way?"

"Top of the stairs on the left." She wrapped her arms around his neck. He carried her up the steps carefully and laid her on the bed.

Betty watched with guarded enjoyment as Jug stripped his shirt off followed by his boots, jeans, and boxers. He climbed onto the bed beside her.

"Roll over," he ordered.

She obeyed, enjoying every moment while he reverently stripped all of her clothing off.

His hands traced every curve of her naked body, worshiping it with kisses and gentle bites.

"Jug." Betty rolled over to face him almost afraid to let him look in her eyes. Emotion overwhelmed her.

"Yeah?" He paused when he saw her silent tears. "What's wrong?"

"I...I just missed you so much." Betty sniffed, trying to hold back the tears, but they flowed freely.

"I missed you too." He brushed away the tears with his thumbs before leaning down to kiss her lips. A soft brush that slowly grew into something passionate and loving.

When they broke apart, he smiled down at her.

"Will you stay with me?" she asked.

"Tonight?"

"For starters." Betty grinned.

Jug narrowed his eyes and sighed. "Yeah, I'll stay. We can talk about the rest in the morning." He pulled her into his arms and kissed her again.

She melted into him, absorbing his warmth and feeling loved for the first time in fourteen years.

"Tonight I plan on making up for lost time." Jug deepened the kiss and kept his promise.

They both had finally come home.


	2. Revelations

The distant sound of a phone ringing woke Jughead from a dead sleep. He wrenched his eyes open, squinting against the sunlight, looking for the source of the offending noise. That's when he noticed the woman lying nestled against his chest, her arms carelessly draped over his torso. Her blonde hair mussed and silky against his skin.

"Betty," he murmured and stroked a stray lock away from her face.

She stirred against him. Her naked body rubbed against his igniting a desire he obviously hadn't sated the night before. She held him tighter but didn't open her eyes.

Jughead's heart swelled at the sight of her, so vulnerable and sexy as hell. His cock twitched against the sheet and brushed her leg where it lay draped across his thigh.

"You're insatiable, Jug, seriously." Betty's breath ghosted across his chest.

He kissed her forehead. "What can I say, you bring out the beast in me."

"That's not necessarily a compliment." She opened her eyes and glanced up at him. The green depths sucked him deep into a dangerous territory. One he knew he'd never return from. He sighed. Maybe it was time to stop running. His life obviously wasn't complete without her.

He'd returned to Riverdale and the world hadn't imploded. The skies hadn't opened and rained fire and brimstone. In fact, their reunion had gone much better than he'd anticipated.

"How come you never got married, Betts?" The question popped from his tongue before he could censor it. He cringed knowing his timing was absolute shit.

She traced lazy patterns on the skin above his heart. "Never met anyone who made me feel the way you do."

He froze. She'd held out hope for him? Now he felt like a total asshole.

"I kept hoping you'd come back...then...well, shit happened."

"Mom!" A voice echoed down the hall through the door.

"Fuck! He wasn't supposed to be home until tonight." Betty scrambled to pull the blankets up over both of them just before the door swung open.

Jug's heart stopped.

"Oh my God, Mom, geezus, put a sock on the door or something!" The young man in the doorway averted his eyes for a half second before pinning Jug in his sights. "Who the hell are you?"

"Forsythe Pendleton Cooper! You will not talk to my guest with that tone."

"I hate when you use my full name." He grimaced.

"Then please show us some respect."

"Fine." The kid snorted as he brushed his hair away from his eyes. "Sorry."

Jughead's vision blurred. His gaze alternated between Betty and her son. The dark brown hair, light blue eyes, careless demeanor, and lanky build. The boy before him could pass for his doppelganger eighteen years ago. He stiffened, unsure of what to do or say. Betty's grip on Jughead's arm tightened.

He met her gaze. "I'm so sorry, Jug. This wasn't how I wanted you to find out."

"Find out what?" the kid asked, crossing his arms.

"Jughead, this is your son, Cooper." She gestured to Jughead and faced her son. "Coop, this is your father, Jughead."

The blood drained from the kid's face. His arms dropped to his sides. "No! That can't be." He backed out of the door and into the hall.

"Coop!" Betty called after him, but the sound of a door slamming snapped her mouth shut. She turned to face Jughead, her eyes filled with tears.

"I'm so sorry, Juggy. This was why I called you." She reached for a tissue beside the bed and dabbed the tears away. "Coop has been getting into trouble at school, and I'm at my wits end."

"Jesus, Betty, why the fuck didn't you tell me I had a son?" He ran his hand through his hair and moved away from her. He needed space to breathe, space to think. He'd been overwhelmed before with the emotions he harbored for Betty and what they would mean for his future, but fucking hell, he had a son. A son. Deep inside a sense of pride welled and mingled with the shock and fear.

"I tried to...I did. After you left, I found out I was pregnant. I tried to find you, asked everyone to help, but you'd vanished into thin air." She smiled through the tears. His heart ached at the sight of her in pain. But he let her speak. "It wasn't until I saw you'd published your first book that I knew how to find you." She shook her head. "But by that point, I was a single mom and handling it. I couldn't ruin your life by dumping my problems onto you. Plus, telling you in person seemed like the most considerate way to do it."

"Thanks for that at least." He mussed his hair again with both hands, half tempted to tear it out at the roots. "But, Betty, you should have told me. I had a right to know about my son. I could have been there for you both."

A half-sob half laugh bubbled from her throat. Betty turned her tear reddened eyes toward him.  "I'm so sorry, Jughead. I failed both of you. Coop deserved to have his father in his life, and you deserved to see him grow up." She hiccupped as the tears flowed.

"Betts," Jug said as he gathered her in his arms drawing her against his chest. He rocked her as she cried. They both had failed not only Cooper, but each other. "I shouldn't have run away from you. I was wrong."

Silence descended on the room. Jughead held her tight. Betty clung to him.

"Sweetheart." He tilted her chin up so their eyes met. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm here now. We'll make this work."

She beamed up at him, her tear streaked face and red rimmed eyes tugging at his heartstrings. "Really?" she asked almost afraid to be hopeful.

"Really. I'll go talk to Coop." He kissed her forehead. "Why don't you go whip up something for breakfast and we'll be right down."

Betty kissed him on the lips. Jughead held her firm and deepened the kiss, tasting her once more. He'd been a fool before, now he knew it for certain. He pulled away wanting nothing more than to pull her down onto the bed and make love to her again, but that would have to wait.

"Later," he said with a swift kiss to her cheek. "I need to go talk to my son."

Her fierce smile and nod gave him the push he needed.

Jughead slid from the bed and put his boxers and jeans on. Then he stepped into the hallway and made his way to face the music...and his son.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hadn't intended for this to continue, but Jughead demanded I continue writing. This scene popped into my head and I knew I had to write it. I know it's kind of cliche, but this is how it's unfolding in my head. Hope you like it. :)


	3. Stay

Jughead stood before his son's bedroom door. His gut twisted with anxiety and uncertainty. As much as he wanted to reach out and open the door, he couldn't bring himself to do it. Somewhere deep inside he couldn't wrap his head around the fact that he was a father and the kid on the other side of the door had been a product of the passion he and Betty had shared years ago. He couldn't help but wonder, had he known, would he have stayed away?

His dark thoughts flickered to his own relationship with his father. The moments when his father seemed the farthest out of reach were the moments he needed him the most.

Jug braced his hand against the frame to catch his breath. Emotion overwhelmed him. _I'm a father. Fuck. What do I do with this? How do even reach this kid?_ He tapped his fingers on the frame and finally pushed away with a determined sigh.

He knocked.

"Go away, Mom!" the angry teen shouted.

"It's not your mom," Jug said trying very hard not to channel his own dad.

Silence.

"May I come in, Cooper?" His tone remained neutral. Part of him wanted to respect the kid's privacy and let him deal with it in his own time, but fuck, too much time had already been wasted. "Please."

"Door's unlocked," came the clipped reply.

Twisting the knob, Jughead took a deep breath. The room looked a lot like his would have. The dark blue walls were littered with old movie posters and art sketches. A tall bookshelf stood on the far wall lined with books and DVDs. He smiled and wondered if Betty had influenced some of Cooper's taste or if the kid just picked up on their genetic love of art in all its forms.

Cooper lay on his bed, his face hidden by a book. His torn jeans blended in with his dark blue comforter. He never looked up, never revealed anything but casual disinterest.

"Mind if I sit?" Jughead asked as he pulled out the desk chair.

"It's a free country," Cooper quipped in monotone.

Jughead chuckled and sat. He liked the kid already. "Is it?"

"Well, that's what they want us to believe anyway." Cooper dropped the book and met Jug's gaze. "What do you want?"

"Look, I get it. We've both just had a huge bomb dropped on us." Jug sat back and ran his hand through his hair. "I mean, I don't know about you, but I'm still in shock."

Cooper scoffed and lifted his book again, but this time he didn't hide his face.

Jug wasn't sure what to say. All he knew was that nothing he said would make this whole process any easier. So he gave the kid, and himself, a pass on emotions for the moment.

"You gonna bail on us again?"

Jughead glanced over seeing Cooper still looking at his book, but his fingers tight on the cover, his eyes not moving. He wasn't reading, he just couldn't look at Jug. Cooper was afraid. _Fuck_.

With a shake of his head, Jug said, "No, Cooper, I'm not going to bail on you, or your mom." He sighed. "I'm sorry. I should have come back sooner. Every excuse I could use is total shit." Jug paused and searched Cooper's face. "But I'm willing to stay, if you want me to."

Cooper shrugged, but Jug saw the sheen of tears in his eyes. The kid swiped them away with his fists before they could fall and sniffed.

"We can talk about it later if you want." Jug stood not wanting to push him too far too fast. "Your mom's making breakfast. You're welcome to come down and join us." He glanced at the poster of Rebel Without a Cause on the wall.

"Love that movie," he said, running his hand across the smooth paper.

Without another word, Jughead left Cooper's room and closed the door behind him.

The soft strains of music filtered up the stairs. Jug followed the strains of...was that Aerosmith? He ventured down the stairs, turned the corner, and leaned against the doorframe.

Betty danced while she slid the spatula into the pan and stirred the contents of the skillet. Her voice blended with Steven Tyler's in a soulful rendition of _I Don't Want to Miss a Thing_ playing on the radio. The lyrics were a bit rusty to his ears, but on Betty's lips, they sounded like heaven and hit him square in the gut.

He tucked his hands into his pockets and watched her. She moved and sang completely oblivious to his presence.

Her golden ponytail trailed teasingly down the soft pink silk robe. His mouth watered remembering what lay beneath that fabric. He shifted himself in his jeans to ease up the strain her presence put him under. He'd been hard for her all night and well into the morning. Being with her made him feel like he'd well and truly come home.

Even with the goddamn shock of a lifetime she'd hit him with, he didn't feel resentment or anger. Hurt, hell yeah, who wouldn't? But he understood. Goddamn fucking sucked that he'd spent so long in the dark, but he understood why she hadn't reached out to him sooner.

She reached for a glass in the cabinet and her robe slipped up, revealing a long expanse of her thigh. He groaned.

"Need any help?" he asked finally making his presence known.

Betty turned and the glass in her hand slipped, falling to the floor and shattering. "Damn it!"

"Don't move," Jug said as he stepped into the kitchen and reached for the broom he noticed leaning against the wall behind the back door. Carefully, he cleaned the shattered glass from the floor and turned toward her.

He pulled her into his arms and searched her face. "You okay? It didn't cut you did it?"

Betty shook her head. "No, I'm fine. You scared the shit out of me, Jughead!" She slapped his shoulder playfully. "Don't do that."

"I scared you?" he said with a laugh. "That's the second scare you've given me this morning."

She dipped her head, hiding her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Betts." He tipped her chin up with his fingertips. "It's okay. Really. I understand why you didn't come to me, although I really wish you had told me years ago."

"I wanted to," she murmured. "Desperately. I almost did a few times, but I couldn't drag you back to a town you hated. I couldn't pull that card to force you to stay with us."

"You wouldn't have had to force me, Betty. I would have done anything for you both." He brushed his fingers across her cheek.

"I know you would have." She smoothed her hand over his heart. "Because I know you, Jughead Jones, beneath that dark, brooding exterior, you're a damn good man."

"I can't imagine life without my father. As shitty as he was sometimes, he always had my back when it mattered." Jug held her tight. "I wish I could have been there for Cooper, and for you."

"You'd be a great dad," Betty said wistfully. "I can't make up for what you lost, but the offer is on the table. If you want to stay with us, you're welcome. You always have been welcome in this house, Juggy."

"I can't stay. Not until I hear you say the words, Betty." He pulled her close. Her heat sank into him. Jug inhaled the sweet aroma of her floral shampoo and the undeniable scent he'd always associate with her. The memory of her the night before slammed into him with a demanding need. A vision of Betty hot and slick riding him until she reached orgasm.

"Jughead Jones, I love you. I always have. I always will." She wrapped her arms around his neck and drew him down for a kiss.

Their lips met and desire exploded inside him. His hands slipped down over her curves, and with little effort, he lifted her off the floor, placing her on the counter behind them. His hands slipped beneath the silk and caressed her bare skin.

"I love you, Betty Cooper. I never stopped loving you," he whispered against her neck before biting the soft skin below her ear.

"Oh, my God!" Cooper's voice made them both freeze. "If you're going to be living here, this needs to stop. Seriously. You have a bedroom, and I'll even make you a sign for the door!"

Jug tugged the robe together and blocked Betty from view of her son. He helped her off the counter and caught a glimpse of her shaking with laughter. They glanced at each other before turning to face their son.

"You're absolutely right, Cooper." Jug kissed Betty's forehead and helped her plate breakfast.

Both of them burst with laughter at the whole situation. It served him right for not learning to control himself. He had a family to consider, not just his own primal urges. He swatted Betty's ass when she walked by.

Cooper rolled his eyes and took a plate from Betty. They all sat at the table in the small dining room.

"Welcome home, Juggy." Betty grinned at him.

"Yeah, welcome to the family...finally," Cooper added.

"Cooper!" Betty chided, giving her son a stern look.

"He's absolutely right," Jughead said with a nod. "But don’t worry. It takes more than a little sass to scare me off. Doesn't it, Betts?"

She blushed and took a bite of her hashbrowns.

Jughead hadn't anticipated such a reunion, but he wouldn't have had it any other way. In his mind, it was perfect. He'd finally come home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it for this specific moment and this story. Although I can't say I'll never return to this Jughead and Betty and their son Cooper. One thing I learned as an author, never say never. I hope you enjoyed it. Comments and love appreciated. Thanks for reading. <3

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed my little one shot. I needed an older, scruffy, jaded Jughead wearing leather and riding a motorcycle. This is what came out. I doubt this is the last time we'll see him. <3 Thanks for reading.


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